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In her first visit to the property since becoming secretary in January 2011, Walters walked a barbed-wire ringed section of cottages where, Polk County deputies say, some of the 138 teen boys housed there wreaked havoc as a small army of law enforcement surrounded the property.

Deputies reported seeing teenagers throw televisions and fire extinguishers through windows during the riot Saturday night. By Tuesday, the glass shards had been swept and many of the windows replaced, work aided by the 66 boys who remain on the property.

"I guess that TV survived," Walters said as she stood in the recreation area of one cottage.

Without calling the descriptions of damage by the Polk County Sheriff's Office an exaggeration, Walters seemed to view it as less extreme than initially reported.

"It's certainly not a good thing that happened," she said. "But it certainly wasn't to the scale we thought."

The Sheriff's Office initially reported that at least 18 buildings of the 20 buildings where the riot occurred had been destroyed. Carrie Eleazer, a sheriff's spokeswoman who toured the property shortly after the riot, said Tuesday she meant the damage had rendered the buildings uninhabitable.

Jim Hill, the president of G4S, the private company contracted by the state to operate the facility, said Tuesday about 14 buildings had been damaged, and it was mostly limited to shattered windows. The Sheriff's Office has also estimated the riot left hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage. The only estimate Hill provided Tuesday was for the window replacements: $8,000.

The incident left eight boys injured, including one who broke a leg when he was run over by a golf cart, according to the Sheriff's Office. Deputies reported seeing at least six boys riding through the area on a golf cart they had taken.

Of apparent greater concern to Walters than the damage was a period of time during which the boys were left unsupervised during the mayhem.

The Sheriff's Office says the riot started after a basketball game when the losing team of boys refused to pay a bet of three packs of instant noodles. The fight spread to involve other boys, and the vandalism ensued. After G4S staff called 911, more than 150 officers arrived, setting up a perimeter and gathering at the facility's gate.

At some point, the estimated 19 to 21 G4S staffers left the area of rioting.

Sheriff Grady Judd said deputies used a public address system to call boys to the gate and, over the course of three hours, they eventually surrendered peacefully.

Walters said it was unclear to her whether law enforcement ordered G4S employees to leave or whether they left on their own. Her first briefing from the Sheriff's Office on the incident Tuesday gave her a "Reader's Digest" version, she said, and did not delve into the details of that portion of the night.

Eleazer, the sheriff's spokeswoman, said Tuesday when law enforcement arrived that most of the staff had already left the facility. A group of about seven had gathered near the gate, and authorities told them to leave for their safety.

In the background noise of the 911 call, a man can be heard saying "stay out of it" and instructing someone to write down the names of those involved so they can provide them to the authorities.

The Sheriff's Office is still investigating criminal charges against the boys, and expects to charge as many as 32, a number that could increase, officials said. The DJJ inspector general is conducting his own separate investigation.

Approximately 70 boys remain at a Polk County Jail building under supervision of G4S. They could return to the Avon Park property before the end of the week.

Boys at the Avon Park facility had the freedom to leave their cottages at will, but a G4S officials said an adult was always nearby. The facility had a ratio of one staff member for every eight boys. DJJ considers them lesser risk for misbehavior because they haven't been accused of violent crimes.

"This program has been misunderstood based on what happened here," Walters said.

The academy teaches teenagers a variety of trades, including plumbing and electrical work. DJJ staff were quick to point out buildings the boys helped build or repair themselves.

Before the riot, the teenagers were in the middle of renovating a row of cottages that stand among those now damaged.

The rioters left those untouched.

[ Matthew Pleasant can be reached at matthew.pleasant@theledger.com or 863-802-7590. ]

<p>AVON PARK | The scent of fresh paint wafted from a tidy row of cottages Tuesday at the Avon Park Youth Academy, not quite the scene of sweeping destruction state Department of Juvenile Justice Secretary Wansley Walters expected.</p><p>In her first visit to the property since becoming secretary in January 2011, Walters walked a barbed-wire ringed section of cottages where, Polk County deputies say, some of the 138 teen boys housed there wreaked havoc as a small army of law enforcement surrounded the property.</p><p>Deputies reported seeing teenagers throw televisions and fire extinguishers through windows during the riot Saturday night. By Tuesday, the glass shards had been swept and many of the windows replaced, work aided by the 66 boys who remain on the property.</p><p>"I guess that TV survived," Walters said as she stood in the recreation area of one cottage.</p><p>Without calling the descriptions of damage by the Polk County Sheriff's Office an exaggeration, Walters seemed to view it as less extreme than initially reported.</p><p>"It's certainly not a good thing that happened," she said. "But it certainly wasn't to the scale we thought."</p><p>The Sheriff's Office initially reported that at least 18 buildings of the 20 buildings where the riot occurred had been destroyed. Carrie Eleazer, a sheriff's spokeswoman who toured the property shortly after the riot, said Tuesday she meant the damage had rendered the buildings uninhabitable.</p><p>Jim Hill, the president of G4S, the private company contracted by the state to operate the facility, said Tuesday about 14 buildings had been damaged, and it was mostly limited to shattered windows. The Sheriff's Office has also estimated the riot left hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage. The only estimate Hill provided Tuesday was for the window replacements: $8,000.</p><p>The incident left eight boys injured, including one who broke a leg when he was run over by a golf cart, according to the Sheriff's Office. Deputies reported seeing at least six boys riding through the area on a golf cart they had taken.</p><p>Of apparent greater concern to Walters than the damage was a period of time during which the boys were left unsupervised during the mayhem.</p><p>The Sheriff's Office says the riot started after a basketball game when the losing team of boys refused to pay a bet of three packs of instant noodles. The fight spread to involve other boys, and the vandalism ensued. After G4S staff called 911, more than 150 officers arrived, setting up a perimeter and gathering at the facility's gate.</p><p>At some point, the estimated 19 to 21 G4S staffers left the area of rioting.</p><p>Sheriff Grady Judd said deputies used a public address system to call boys to the gate and, over the course of three hours, they eventually surrendered peacefully.</p><p>Walters said it was unclear to her whether law enforcement ordered G4S employees to leave or whether they left on their own. Her first briefing from the Sheriff's Office on the incident Tuesday gave her a "Reader's Digest" version, she said, and did not delve into the details of that portion of the night.</p><p>Eleazer, the sheriff's spokeswoman, said Tuesday when law enforcement arrived that most of the staff had already left the facility. A group of about seven had gathered near the gate, and authorities told them to leave for their safety.</p><p>In the background noise of the 911 call, a man can be heard saying "stay out of it" and instructing someone to write down the names of those involved so they can provide them to the authorities.</p><p>The Sheriff's Office is still investigating criminal charges against the boys, and expects to charge as many as 32, a number that could increase, officials said. The DJJ inspector general is conducting his own separate investigation.</p><p>Approximately 70 boys remain at a Polk County Jail building under supervision of G4S. They could return to the Avon Park property before the end of the week.</p><p>Boys at the Avon Park facility had the freedom to leave their cottages at will, but a G4S officials said an adult was always nearby. The facility had a ratio of one staff member for every eight boys. DJJ considers them lesser risk for misbehavior because they haven't been accused of violent crimes.</p><p>"This program has been misunderstood based on what happened here," Walters said.</p><p>The academy teaches teenagers a variety of trades, including plumbing and electrical work. DJJ staff were quick to point out buildings the boys helped build or repair themselves.</p><p>Before the riot, the teenagers were in the middle of renovating a row of cottages that stand among those now damaged.</p><p>The rioters left those untouched.</p><p>[ Matthew Pleasant can be reached at matthew.pleasant@theledger.com or 863-802-7590. ]</p>